Former BMW i8 project manager is now the CEO of Chinese Startup Smart Electric Car

Chinese Startup Smart Electric Car has hired former BMW i8 project manager – Carsten Breitfeld – as their new CEO. We met Breitfeld on several …

Chinese Startup Smart Electric Car has hired former BMW i8 project manager – Carsten Breitfeld – as their new CEO. We met Breitfeld on several occasions and spoke at length about the state of the BMW i division, the i8 hybrid sportscar and future of electro-mobility.

The COO role was assigned to Daniel Kirchert, also a former BMW employee responsible for the sales division in China.

The Chinese e-mobility start-up Internet Smart Electric Car wants to attack the premium EV market in the next few years with high-quality electric cars sold not only in China but also overseas.

The financiers behind the startup are the electronics company Foxconn, the Internet experts of Tencent and the Chinese car dealers Harmony Auto.

The two will bring years of technical and marketing expertise which will create additional competition in the segment for BMW and its current and upcoming electric vehicles.